Governor O’Malley signs MHEC
departmental bills

ANNAPOLIS, MD (April 25, 2008)

Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley yesterday signed legislation
that expands eligibility for the Graduate and Professional
Scholarship program, and authorizes the Maryland Higher
Education Commission to require an application fee from
institutions of postsecondary education that are seeking
certification to operate in Maryland. Senate Bill 141 (now
Chapter 152, 2008) and Senate Bill 187 (now Chapter 157, 2008)
were approved unanimously by the General Assembly.

Chapter 152 expands the eligibility for the Graduate and
Professional Scholarship program to eligible students attending
institutions of higher education in Maryland that offer first
professional degrees in pharmacy.

Before this bill became law, only the University of Maryland,
Baltimore currently received funds to provide scholarships to
pharmacy students. With the recent addition of a first
professional degree in pharmacy at the College of Notre Dame,
and with other schools looking to add similar programs, MHEC’s
aim was to expand the Graduate and Professional Scholarship
Program to accommodate new post-graduate pharmacy schools.

“I am pleased to see that the General Assembly and Governor saw
the importance of strengthening our higher education pharmacy
programs and allowing us to provide scholarships to any pharmacy
program in the State,” Higher Education Secretary James E.
Lyons, Sr., said. “This is a workforce shortage problem in
Maryland so this legislation addresses that. I know addressing
workforce shortage issues is a major issue for Governor
O’Malley”

Chapter 157 authorizes MHEC to charge an application fee from
institutions of postsecondary education that are seeking
certification to operate in Maryland. Prior to becoming law,
institutions of postsecondary education were not allowed to
operate in Maryland without a certificate of approval from MHEC.
MHEC was not authorized to charge application fees to
institutions of higher education seeking certification to
operate in the State. Through regulations, MHEC is authorized to
charge application fees to private career schools seeking
certification.

“This bill is very important because it helps offset costs for
evaluation time at no expense to the state,” said Assistant
Secretary for Academic Affairs Dr. George Reid.

The Maryland Higher Education Commission is a 12-member
coordinating board responsible for establishing statewide
policies for Maryland public and independent colleges and
universities and private career schools. It serves as an
advocate for more than 325,000 college students in Maryland, for
the State and its needs, and for business and industry in
Maryland.